Braves: Austin Riley
Austin Riley had a down 2025 by his standards, posting league-average offense in his second consecutive season plagued by injuries. Riley missed time throughout 2025 with abdominal strains, missing time in July before being placed on the IL in August for the remainder of the season.
Throughout the early 2020s, Riley has been one of the top hitters in the game, posting at least 5 fWAR in each season from 2021-2023. Many of the traits that made him such an elite batter were still present in his last two seasons, despite declining results.
In 2025, look for Riley to retain his elite swing metrics while shoring up a career-worst 28.6% strikeout rate. Better pulled-fly-ball trends were a welcome change in 2025, yet Riley’s elite bat speed should allow his power to play anywhere in the park.
Marlins: Sandy Alcantara
Sandy Alcantara returned from an October 2023 Tommy John surgery in 2025, making 31 starts with mixed results. Through July 18th, Alcantara posted a 7.14 ERA, yet settled down for a 3.33 ERA in his final 13 starts.
Recovery from TJS is rarely linear, and it was great to see Alcantara return to form down the stretch. As the season progressed, Alcantara’s stuff returned much closer to 2022-2023 form, and his results followed.
Alcantara has also looked strong in spring training thus far, working his new sweeper into a March 5th outing with eight whiffs and 3.0 perfect innings pitched. His velocity was also in line with his best seasons in the majors.
Alcantara possesses an incredibly valuable skillset at his best, working deep into games consistently with elite ground ball and chase rates. Look for Alcantara to rediscover these trends in 2026 as the anchor of an exciting Marlins rotation.
Mets: Luis Robert Jr.
Luis Robert Jr. has had a rough last two years, battling various lower-half injuries on a middling White Sox team with little offensive support. After a mid-January trade to the Mets, Robert looks to once again show the superstar potential he flashed from 2021 to 2023.
Despite a repeated 84 wRC+ in 2024 and 2025, Robert’s underlying metrics were far improved in 2025. Robert also posted a career-best 9.3% walk rate with his lowest strikeout rate (26.0%) since 2022.
Robert had a strong second half in 2025, with an .808 OPS despite various trade rumors around the deadline. With an offseason trade to an entirely new league, Robert will look to continue this trend in a new uniform in 2026.
Despite not yet playing in any spring training games, Robert is reportedly in a good place as he continues to recover from his lower-half injuries. As the projected starting center fielder for the Mets, Robert will get many chances to prove his elite potential is still intact.
Nationals: Josiah Gray
Josiah Gray is looking to return to the Nationals rotation in 2026 after missing all of 2025 and making just two starts in 2024 before undergoing Tommy John surgery. Gray also dealt with a flexor strain prior, giving him multiple arm injuries after a breakout 2023 season.
Gray has already made two appearances in spring training, generating decent results with flashes of his prior stuff. His first start looked especially promising, getting up to 94 a few times, yet his velocity was averaging below 91 in his second appearance.
Gray also only threw four pitch types in each of his appearances, down from seven in 2023. Some of Gray’s strengths that season were his deep arsenal, helping supplement his below-average four-seam, yet adding velocity could alleviate this need.
Overall, Gray returning with his same arsenal and a better approach (fewer bad four-seams) would likely be a huge layer of stability for a high-risk Nationals rotation. Look for Gray to get back to league-average results or better in 2026.
Phillies: Aaron Nola
Aaron Nola had a strange 2025 season, mired by an ankle sprain that kept him out of action for about a month before developing a stress fracture in his rib during rehab. This led to inconsistency in both playing time and results, a combination generally unfamiliar to the ever-reliable righty.
For the first time in nearly a decade, Nola failed to pitch a full season, and when active, saw lapses in command and velocity on his four-seam and curveball, two pitches that have consistently been the key to his success. Still, Nola’s changeup remained fairly effective, and his velocity dips weren’t significant enough (~1 mph) for concern when considering injuries.
Nola is reportedly healthy and is currently pitching for Team Italy in the WBC. His most recent outing saw three scoreless innings against Team Canada with the same elite command he’s boasted throughout his career.
Nola’s velocity was close to 2024 levels while his command was clearly excellent. If his health holds strong, expect Nola to return to form with the Phillies in 2026.
